The spirit of war has captured our nation. Friends, as individuals and as corporate bodies, can be tempted by this spirit. The first temptation is described by Thomas Merton as the frenzy of activism. The second temptation is to succumb to the spirit of war by denigrating those who see "no alternative" to war. We will know we have succumbed if Friends describe the Bush administration using the same absolutist, hopeless terms that the administration uses to describe Saddam Hussein. The third temptation is simply to oppose the war. Our testimony is not only that war is wrong, but more importantly, that there is power available that takes away the occasion of war. Our Yearly Meeting minute is entitled the Gospel of Peace. To preach that Gospel, we must study it in all its fullness, with our heads and with our hearts as well. To live in that Light and Power that takes away the occasion of war means taking time to open ourselves so that we can then do the rigorous work of loving and truth-telling as individuals and as meetings.

Farmington-Scipio Region is inviting its meetings to conduct the New York Yearly Meeting Spiritual Nurturance Program, not simply as a resource for individual spiritual development, but as a support for discernment and action. The program involves three regional retreats and two local meetings per month over the course of nine months. One local meeting focuses on reading and discussion; the other focuses on mutual support and accountability for practice. Two, three, or more Friends from a local area are asked to attend the retreat together and to commit to the two meetings per month with each other at home.

The first retreat was held at Rochester Meeting, September 28, 2002. An alternative for that retreat was Buffalo Meeting's retreat at Finn's Inn October 11-12, to which Buffalo invited Friends from Fredonia, Orchard Park, and Collins. The second retreat was scheduled for January but is being rescheduled for February 22, 2003, in order to bring Michael Green of North Carolina Yearly Meeting and the School of the Spirit as a resource. The third retreat is scheduled for June 28, 2003.

The reading list and schedule for the twice-monthly sessions is available in the booklet distributed by NYYM Ministry & Counsel to each meeting in June 2001. A variant of the schedule, adapted for Farmington-Scipio, and the agenda for the first retreat are available by e-mailing or writing Karen Reixach kreixach@prodigy.net, 1183 Park Avenue, Rochester, NY 14610.

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New Brunswick Meeting Peace Activities

I only wish that all our activities would be having a demonstrable impact on the national level, but we are disappointed at the way the political arena is headed.

Peace to you,
Robin Gowin

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Non-Quakers Join Poughkeepsie Peace Vigils

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Open the Door, Light the Light
Inreach, Outreach, and Local Meeting Advancement

An Inter-Yearly Meeting Workshop

Cosponsored by
Friends General Conference Advancement & Outreach Committee
New York Yearly Meeting Advancement Committee

November 22-24, 2002
Powell House

Explore connections between spiritual life, community, communication, witness, and meeting growth while also learning nuts and bolts advancement techniques. Learn how to work with your meeting to create a sound advancement plan. Topics include:

• Success Stories What paths to growth have other meetings found?
• Communication, Community , Spiritual Vitality Why are these aspects of meeting life central to advancement?
• Witness In what ways can social witness playa role in meeting growth?
• Nitty Grit ties How do seemingly routine aspects of meeting life affect visitors?
• Visibility and Outreach What are some of the ways a meeting can gain visibility on a limited budget? How can Friends best evaluate outreach efforts?
• Diversity How can meetings make themselves more welcoming to Friends of Color and to seekers who are People of Color? What other kinds of diversity can Friends promote?
• Advancement Plans What are they and how do we get there?

Facilitators: Deborah Haines, clerk, FGC Advancement & Outreach Committee and Jane Berger, clerk, NYYM Advancement Committee. Deborah and Jane have been traveling with a concern for outreach, offering workshops at monthly, quarterly, and yearly meetings, and at the FGC gathering.

Cost: $160 adults, $80 children (2 17), $40 infants. Childcare available with at least 3 weeks' advance notice. For information and registration, call or write Powell House, 524 Pitt Hall Rd., Old Chatham NY 12136; 518- 794-8811; fax: 518- 794-8815; info@powellhouse.org. Register online at www.powellhouse.org. Powell House is about 30 minutes from Hudson, N.Y., Amtrak station, and a little farther from the Albany airport and the Albany Amtrak station. With advance notice rides can be arranged.

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Peace Witness in a Time of Crisis

Participation in the conference will be limited to 200 people, with at least 50 to be young Friends age 18-30. All yearly meetings have been asked to name two or three persons to attend. In addition, each yearly meeting has been asked to sponsor young Friends who wish to attend. After October I, the remaining places will be opened up to all Friends. Information: FWCC Section of the Americas, 1506 Race St., Philadelphia PA 19102; 215- 241-7250; (215) 241-7285 (fax); fwccpeace@fwcc.quaker.org.

A Web site is planned to enable this to be a virtual conference. Financial contributions are sought to provide scholarship assistance.

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A call to Quaker Women

As Quaker women we are being called. We are being called to action. We are being called to action on behalf of the testimonies of equality and peace.

We believe that if we continue to rely on violence to resolve differences it is only a matter of time before we will ignite global catastrophe and ultimate destruction. We believe that we have a moral obligation to intervene here and now.

We believe that as human beings we already possess the ability to create a global culture of peace and nonviolence. What we lack is the will to do it. It is time for human beings everywhere to commit themselves to bring into being cultures of peace. We draw upon the first declaration of the Quaker peace testimony of 1660, "We utterly deny all outward wars and strife and fightings with outward weapons, for any end or under any pretense whatsoever. And this is our testimony to the whole world."

We believe there is a direct connection between the current culture of violence in the U.S. and elsewhere and the global oppression of women. We recognize that a commitment to peace requires us to acknowledge that women and children are the majority of victims of these wars. We believe that genuine peace requires radical equality. We commit ourselves to establishing a global culture of peace and requiring an end to the global oppression of women.

In making this commitment, we draw on the Quaker testimony of equality. We believe that women have a crucial role to play at this moment in human history. If humankind, on the brink of unthinkable world catastrophe, is to reverse the move toward increasing violence, a revolutionary transformation must occur. We, women and men, have a responsibility to be instrumental in bringing about this transformation from a culture of war to a culture of peace and radical equality.

We call upon Quaker women and like-minded women across the United States to gather on Sunday, October 20, 2002, in a nonviolent vigil at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., at the beginning of United Nations International Disarmament Week.

Spiritual preparation, nonviolence training, and community-building will be offered, evening of October 19 and the morning of the 20th. Vigiling and/or lobbying at the U.S. Capitol on Monday, October 21 will be possible. Hospitality is available if requested.

Gather beginning 7 P.M. October 19 or beginning 9 A.M. on October 20. Details from Judith Fetterly (New York Yearly Meeting), jf@albany.edu, 518-475-1773; Kaki Sjogren (Philadelphia Yearly Meeting), kakisj@aol.com, 215-423-4115; Gail Newbold (Philadelphia Yearly Meeting), gnewbold@kennett.net, 610-869-3455; J. E. McNeil (Baltimore Yearly Meeting), jmcnrick@yahoo.com, 202-244-0594.

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Connecticut Friends School's PoHo Retreat

The head of school, Kim Tsocanos, explains that although there are pockets of academic pursuits, "the trip is as much about the 'invisibles' of our curriculum the retreat contributes to the social, emotional, and spiritual growth of everyone who joins us on the journey. Given the importance of field trips to Friends philosophy and curriculum, we treat these field trips as integral components to learning, not as optional extracurricular activities.

"At Powell House, as on all our field trips, we get to be with one another beyond the confines of the school environment," said Tsocanos. "All ages of children get to work, play, eat, and rest together in ways that develop deep friendships and give a taste of extended family that some of us may otherwise never experience. We are all given the opportunity to enhance and strengthen our feelings of community in a safe environment.

"Field trips also foster in students the desire to expand their knowledge about the world and the other people in it. Particularly at this time in history when so much is changing, the Connecticut Friends School feels it is appropriate for children to be comfortable with and enjoy that which is new and unusual. Whether it is food, speech mannerisms, concepts, or physical environments, it is important that children meet 'newness' with the spirit of opportunity, curiosity, and joy about the diversity of our planet."

For further information about Connecticut Friends School, contact Judy Meikle Head of Admissions, 203-762-9860, or visit our Web site, www.ctfriendsschool.org.

Sean Higgins, communications & technology coordinator, Connecticut Friends School

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Meeting for Worship at Quaker House

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George Fox's Legacy: Friends for 350 Years

October 11-12, 2002, at Swarthmore College

There will be a modest registration fee (waived for students) and meals will be available on the Swarthmore College Campus. Preregistration is required. For information and registration forms, write to Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College, 500 College Ave., Swarthmore, PA 19081-1399, attention Charlotte Blandford; or e-mail cblandf1@swarthmore.edu or call 610-328-8498. Information is also available on Friends Historical Library Web site, http://www.swarthmore.edu/Library/friends.

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Quaker Meetinghouse Exhibit in Philadelphia

Silent Witness: Quaker Meeting Houses in the Delaware Valley, 1695 to the Present is on view through December 31, 2002, at the Athenaeum of Philadelphia, 219 S. 6th St. The exhibit displays the results of the Historic American Building Survey of the National Park Service, which traced the evolution of regional Quaker meetinghouse design as shown by 27 meetinghouses in Philadelphia Yearly Meeting. Hours are 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M., Monday through Friday.

For further information call 215-241-7241 or visit www.quakerinfo.org. A catalog of the exhibit can be obtained from the Friends General Conference Bookstore (215) 561-1700; www.quakerbooks.org.